Irini's roses

oil on canvas, 5"x7"

The pinkish orange afternoon light on the bouquet of roses and rosemary that Irini made for our last group dinner together was especially pretty. She picked them from her gorgeous garden. That afternoon light is a color I've only seen in Greece, like the blues of the Aegean Sea. Early evenings were extra special because I was treated to the beautiful purple, orange, red, and blue sunsets that created natural art that I looked forward to every day. That light of the setting sun beamed into my "home away from home," lighting the front room and featuring shadows on the walls. 

I ended up using the oil colors I still had in my collection (as I mentioned in my last post, I left my favorite colors on Paros back in April). Alizarin crimson, Permanent green light, Azo Green, Cerulean blue, Phthalo tuquoise, Winsor lemon ... I think they were perfect for this painting and stretched my repertoire of colors. This might be a bit too dark but I like the starkness of it, which reminds me of the shadows I used to watch. I guess that is what art is for me ... a way to imbed in my brain the images and feelings of experiences. Even if I part with the pieces, the experience of painting the scenes and the feelings they evoke always stay with me.